One Last Time
by BuffyAnn23
Summary: Short One-Shot to the episode "The End of Time part 2". The Doctor needs to see Rose one last time before his 10th life ends. Slightly AU


**Disclaimer: Once again, Doctor Who and All It's Characters Belong to the BBC. I'm just borrowing them.**

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><p>For a human life, time seems to pass in the span of the beat of the wings of a butterfly. Fleeting moments, unyielding in their resolve. Few and far between, they become precious. Such is not to the life of a Time Lord. Time, an endless stream. "A curse to be lived out alone", he'd told her.<p>

The Doctor saved Rose for last. She was the first person his eyes saw after he regenerated into his tenth form. Reborn out of her love and devotion, and he in turn created from his to her. It seemed only right that hers would be the last face these eyes beheld as well.

He hadn't meant for her to see him, timelines and all that. As much as he wanted to touch her, hold her.., the fact that he was close to the end quickly outweighed those desires. He preferred not to have to dodge reapers from an accidental paradox while he was in the middle of a regeneration cycle. The radiation causing havoc on his body seemed to have other ideas, and he sucked in a shuddering breath, groaning as he doubled over.

"You alright, Mate?" she asked; wrapping her arms around herself to brace the cold.

"Yeah." He replied straightening up.

"Too much to drink?"

"Something like that."

"Maybe it's time you went home."

If she only knew. "Yeah." He swallowed thickly.

"Anyway, Happy New Year." She dipped her head, slightly shivering and smiled.

"And you." He paused, contemplating as she started to turn away. "What year is this?"

She spun around. Confusion quickly replaced with an amused grin. "Blimey, how much have you had?"

"Weelll." He shrugged.

She chuckled lightly. "2005, January the first."

"2005?" He nodded. "Tell you what. I bet you're gonna have a really great year." He smiled, igniting the laugh lines around his eyes.

"Yeah?" She grinned back just as big, swaying her body back and forth. "Well, See ya!" she said with a wave, and took off in a lighthearted jog back towards the estate. She paused to take one last curious look at him through the window before jogging up the stairs.

He smiled after her as another wave of pain washed over him, causing his teeth to clench and he doubled over again. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he began to stagger along the side of the building, pressing a hand to the wall to steady himself.

Rose didn't know what made her stop as she pulled her keys from her pocket to unlock the door of her flat. Something was nagging at the back of her mind, and she had the immediate urge to see the man in the alley one more time. Almost as if she was drawn to him for some reason. "This is crazy." she thought to herself and shook her head. But something was pulling deep within her, and she had a sinking sensation that she would regret this moment for the rest of her life if she didn't go to him now.

Rose turned and ran back down the stairs and out into the night, hoping she wasn't too late. She spotted him quickly. He hadn't made it far from where he was standing when she first noticed him. She was relieved, but also felt slightly worried that there was something else wrong. Something more than "a few too many" down at the pub.

Running towards him, she called out "Hey, Mate!"

The Doctor looked up to see Rose running towards him. His eyes widened and his hearts began to beat out that old familiar samba they played whenever he saw her smile. He instinctively moved to take a step forward, aching to reach out for her hand, and then caught himself. Reapers, paradoxes, and the whole situation involving Bowie Base 1 on Mars flashed through his mind. He wasn't supposed to cross his own timelines, ever. He shouldn't have even come here in the first place, but the desire to see her one last time had overridden all rational thought. If he changed something now, all that time they had together…could be lost, or worse. He began backing deeper into the shadows, praying for strength and trying to keep his face hidden.

When Rose reached him, she paused for a moment. She hadn't really thought this far ahead, and had no idea what she was going to say to this man. He was a stranger. She didn't even know his name, but something about him called out to her on another level. His face was mostly hidden by shadows, but in the dim light, she could still see the warmth in his eyes and the outlines of a smile that made her breath hitch. Something about him just made her feel like…she was home. Safe, and warm, and complete. Her heart pounded in her chest and she let her gut instincts take over. Stepping up to him, Rose grabbed the lapels of his jacket and pulled his lips down to meet hers. After a few seconds, her arms moved up to wrap around his neck, while one hand slid into his hair.

The Doctor was in shock. All thoughts about paradoxes and reapers were completely thrown out the window. The pain seemed to dissipate and all he could feel was the warmth of her body and the softness of her lips against his, and he reveled in it. One of his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her tighter against him, while the other moved up her back to cup the back of her head with his hand, deepening the kiss. For a few moments he lost himself once again, to the woman in his arms. The pink and yellow girl who saved him time and time again from himself. This brave and wonderful human, who owned his hearts and offered him redemption, and for that fleeting moment, time stopped for him.

After a few minutes they broke apart, resting their foreheads together. Neither of them spoke. They just held one another as the snow swirled around them, dancing to the invisible beat of the wind.

"Happy New Year." Rose choked out, before pulling out of his embrace and walking away. She didn't understand why her heart was breaking, as the tears were silently spilling down her face. All she knew was that it felt like a part of her was dying and she didn't know why.

The Doctor remained in the shadows, eyes clenched shut and mouth firm. A single tear ran down his cheek, and it felt like Bad Wolf Bay all over again. Opening his eyes, he watched as she reached the door to the flat. "I love you, Rose Tyler…Always." he whispered into the winter whipped air, and staggered around the corner of the building towards the TARDIS.

Rose paused for a moment, hand on the door. She turned to look back, but he was gone. She raised her other hand, pressing her fingers lightly to her lips as another tear slipped down her cheek, and a song carried through the wind…

_"The universe will sing you to sleep…"_

**A/N: I always felt that Rose and The Doctor were soul mates, and that even if she didn't know who he was yet, something deep down called out to her. There was a point in the scene when she goes into the flat and kind of ducks her head down to look out the window at him again, and she has this look on her face of slight curiosity and yet also seems concerned about him, and thus the plot bunnies took over from there. On a side note this also made me cry when I wrote it. Damn bunnies.**


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